Mr Trinity Usman, an Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC)’s witness on Friday, advised the Federal Excessive Courtroom in Abuja that he acquired and transferred three million {dollars} into Mrs Aisha Achimugu’s firm account.
Usman, the 2nd prosecution witness (PW-2), advised Justice Emeka Nwite whereas being led in proof by the EFCC’s lawyer, Ekele Iheanacho, SAN.
The PW-2, a Bureau De Change (BDC) operator, spoke within the ongoing trial of Halima Buba, Managing Director of SunTrust Financial institution, and her co-defendant, Harmless Mbagwu, the Govt Director/Chief Compliance Officer of the financial institution.
The Information Company of Nigeria reviews that the duo are being prosecuted on cash laundering offences to the tune of $12 million.
In a six-count cost, they had been alleged to have aided high-value money transactions with out routing them by way of a monetary establishment.
The offence is alleged to be opposite to Part 21(a), 2(1), and 9(1)(d) of the Cash Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and punishable below Part 19(2)(b) of the identical Act.
The defendants had been, on June 13, arraigned by the anti-graft company.
They, nonetheless, pleaded not responsible to the counts, and admitted to a N100 million bail with one surety, every in like sum.
On the resumed trial, the witness mentioned he was in court docket to inform what he knew in regards to the transactions he did with Oceangate Engineering Oil & Fuel Ltd, owned by Achimugu.
Usman, who mentioned he was a businessman and normal contractor, mentioned he was additionally into agro allied and oil enterprise.
He mentioned he carried out the companies with corporations or registered names.
He mentioned his corporations embody Triple A and Tee Service Enterprise, T.M. Agro Allied Farm, Triple A and D Oil and Fuel Ltd, Triple A and Tee BDC Ltd, amongst others.
“Typically in April 2025, one Suleiman Ciroma contacted me that he has transaction that he wanted 3 million US {dollars} to (be transfered to) Oceangate Engineering Oil & Fuel Ltd.
“In that exact time, I’ve the cash being in my Triple A and Tee Oil and Fuel Nig Ltd account.
“After we agreed with him, Suleiman Ciroma gave me the greenback fee in money.
“I paid him the {dollars} into Oceangate Engineering Oil and Fuel Ltd account,” he mentioned.
He mentioned the fee was made in April 2025
“Are you able to bear in mind the precise date you made the fee?” Iheanacho requested.
“I made the switch in 4 tranches however I can’t bear in mind the precise day,” the witness responded.
Nonetheless, when the lawyer requested the witness if he knew Buba and Mbagwu, he mentioned he didn’t know them.
“Check out the dock and inform the court docket if you realize the defendants,” Iheanacho requested and the witness merely mentioned, “No.”
Usman advised the court docket that he did the transactions with Triple A and Tee Oil Nig Ltd.
“It was from there I transfered the {dollars} into Oceangate Engineering Oil and Fuel Ltd,” he mentioned.
However when Iheanacho requested the PW-2 if his BDC firm, Triple A and Tee BDC Ltd, featured within the transaction, counsel for the first defendant (Buba), Johnson Usman, SAN, raised an objection.
The senior lawyer argued that Iheanacho’s query was a ploy to provide the witness tips about what to say and the choose directed him to rephrase the query.
The witness mentioned that the licence of Triple A and Tee BDC Ltd, as on the time of the transactions, had been suspended.
He mentioned the money transactions from Ciroma had been made by way of his employees.
He talked about the names of the employees as Abdulkadir Mohammed and Kabir Haruna.
The BDC operator additionally mentioned that he equally did a naira to greenback transaction with Ciroma.
“The naira was transfered into Triple A and Tee Service Enterprise Ltd Checking account.
“The naira additionally was transformed into {dollars} and I despatched the equal into Oceangate account,” he mentioned.
Nonetheless, throughout cross-examination by Buba’s counsel, Usman SAN, the witness was requested to verify to court docket that Triple A and Tee BDC Ltd had been in operations until date and he responded in affirmative.
“After they suspended our licence, we proposed Triple A and Tee BDC Ltd to CBN final 12 months and we have now an approval in precept with CBN,” the witness responded.
“Ciroma Suleiman contacted you in these transactions as a result of he is aware of you as BDC operator?” the lawyer requested and the PW-2 responded in affirmative.
When Usman requested the witness that it was on the premise of that information that the PW-2 despatched his employees to gather the {dollars} from Ciroma, Iheanacho too objected to the query.
The witness admitted that he didn’t inform the defendants earlier than the transactions that his BDC license was suspended at any time.
He mentioned his oil firm account was used for the transactions as a result of it was the account he had out there {dollars}.
‘The selection of utilizing your oil and fuel firm account to switch the {dollars} to Oceangate was your individual resolution,” the lawyer requested and the witness responded in affirmative.
Counsel to the 2nd defendant (Mbagwu), M.S. Ibrahim, SAN, requested the witness if he made any revenue from the transactions and he responded in affirmative.
“Did you inform the defendants whom you could have by no means seeing or know earlier than that you just had been going to make influx fee out of your oil and fuel firm’s account?” Ibrahim requested and the PW-2 mentioned, “No.”
After the cross-examination, the witness was discharged and Justice Nwite adjourned the matter till Dec. 10 and Dec. 11 for continuation of trial.
Earlier on Thursday through the cross-examination of Suleiman Ciroma, the proprietor of Funnacle BDC Ltd and the PW-I by Usman SAN, the witness mentioned the rationale Achimugu requested for the switch of the cash was that if she had deposited the cash in money within the financial institution, she wouldn’t have the ability to switch similar.
Ciroma mentioned Trimizi Usman and Hassan Dantani, upon their representatives gathering the cash, in flip, transferred the {dollars} equal “much less their prices into a delegated account offered by Aisha Achimugu.”
He agreed with Usman’s query that in foreign exchange transaction, a switch can solely be produced from an account the place the cash got here by the use of influx and never by money deposit.
When the lawyer requested Ciroma that Achimugu wanted the greenback switch to buy her two oil blocks, the PW-1 responded in affirmative.
The witness advised the court docket that he’s a member of BDC Merchants Affiliation Wuse Zone 4 in Abuja.
He mentioned that was why when he made his statements to EFCC on April 14, April 11 and Could 7, the chief members of the affiliation had been with him on the time.
Ciroma, who agreed that he was duly cautioned earlier than writing the extra-judicial statements, admitted that there was no half he knowledgeable the defendants, notably Buba, that his BDC licence had expired.
Additionally whereas being cross-examined by Ibrahim, who appeared for the 2nd defendant, Ciroma agreed that he had by no means seen Mbagwu bodily earlier than.
He additionally admitted that he had by no means produced any textual content or Whatsapp message between him and Mbagwu earlier than the court docket earlier than.
